Alarm device.



PATEN'IED APR. 23,.1907.

J. K. STEWART.

ALARM DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 28, 1906.

JQHN K. STEWART, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

ALARM DEVICE.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented April as, 1907.

Application filed March 28, 1906. Serial No- 308,390.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, JOHN STEWART, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicage, in the county of Cook and State ofIllinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Alarm Devices, of which the follow ing is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

Thegpurpose of this invention is to provide a device especially adapted for use upon automobiles and other rapidly traveling road vehicles for sounding an alarm which may be distinguished at a greater distance than the ordinary gongs or pneumatic horns.

It is in general of the nature of a siren hav ing particular construction and adaptation, to the specific use mentioned and consisting of the construction set out in the claims.

In the drawings :Figure 1 is apartly sectional side elevation of adevice embodying the invention, certain parts being broken .away to show interior construction, which section as to such parts being at the line l1 on Fig.2. Fig. 2 is a section at the line 22 on Fig. 1. Figs. 3 and 4 are detail sections looking in opposite directions at the line 3L onFig. 2.

The device shown in the drawings comprises a fixed cylindrical case, 1, having a multiplicity of peripheral mouths or apertures, 2 2 in the peripheral enclosing wall, 2, of the casing, having mounted in it for rotation a vaned wheel comprising a hub, 4, a closed circular side plate, 4, vanes, 4 and a centrally aperturod opposite side plate, 4. This wheel is adapted to operate after the manner of a centrifugal blower or fan taking in the air at the central aperture, 4 of the side plate, 4, and imparting to-the air from the rotation of the wheel centrifugal movement causing it to be discharged peripherally from between the vanes through the apertures, 2, of the case. The portions of the peripheral wall, 2, of the (33E intervening between the apertures, 2 are preferably somewhat longer than the apertures,and the vaned wheel has also an interrupted peripheral wall consisting of segmental portions, 4*, extending in one direction circunil'erentially from each vane toward the succeeding vane, closing a portiondf the mouth through which the air is discharged from between the vanes and reducing said mouth to the openings, 4 which are preferably approximately equal to the openings, 2, of the case. It may be understood that when this wheel is rotated at high speed the air taken in through the central opening and impelled centrifugally will be discharged in interrupted puffs through each of the apertures, 2 and such pufls following each other at high speed will produce a musical note or tone varying with the speed of rotation, according to the familiar principle of the siren. For rotating this wheel at sufficient speed to cause a musical note to be sounded andto render it possible to make such note of as high pitch as desirable for the purpose of an alarm, I provide a speed train which will now be described.

The case, 1, which may be open at the outer side has its inner side formed by the diaphragm, 2*, upon which there is mounted at a central 0 ening and protruding therethrough into tl ie case, a bearing post, 6. This bearing post has a flange, 6 for securing it to the case, ,the flange projecting from a hollow or tubular portion, 6 of the post. Said tubular portion protrudes into the case and into the hollow hub, 4, of the wheel therein. The outer end portion of the post, 6, is reduced in diameter to aiiord bearings for certain parts of the train hereinafter described. Located axially within the hub, 4, of the wheel and secured thereto is a spindle, 7, which is reduced in diameter at its outer end to fit snugly within the correspondingly reduced outer end of the hub to which it is made fast at that point by the pin, 7. The inner end of the spindle is reduced for mounting loosely on it the pinion, 7, which is ada ted to drive the shaft one way, as hereina ter described. The pinion and spindle carry respectively the seats for ball bearings,,9, 9*, which are interposed between them and the post, 6, the collar, 10, being screwed into the end of a hollow portion, 6 of the hub for retaining th balls, 9 On the diaphragm, 2 of the case, 1, there is mounted the gear train case; 11, which at the side remote from the case, 1,

aflordsasupport at 11", to the outer end r of the post, 6', on to which there is screwed at this point a collar, 6, which forms the ad-'- justable' member of the ball case for a ball bearing, 12, which is rovidedfor one member of the train as ereinafter more par ticularly described. A shaft, 13, su ported at one end in the diaphragm, 2 of t e case, 2, and extending out through, and obtaining another support in, the outer wall of'the gear case, 11, has mounted uponiit outside mounted a gear wheel, 15, which has on one face a ratchet flange or rim, 15, and the pedal, 1 1, carries a dog, 14?, which protruding through a segmental slot, 11, in the case,

11, engages the ratchet rim, 15, a s ring, 14, being provided to retract the pe al to carry the dog back over the ratchet. The dog is preferably a serrated segment, 14*, having a stem, 14t a shoulder, 14", about the stem back of the segment head for stopping a spring, 15, which is coiled around the stem and. stopped opposite the shoulder on the socket piece, 15, which is set into the lever arm, 14, for that purpose, the dog being retained by housing, 15", engaged with the socket piece and having a segmental slot for the segmental serrated head, 14. The purpose of the serrated head instead of a single tooth is to afl'ord more powerful engagement with the'ratchet rim, 15*, notwithstanding tho preferably -line teeth of the latter. A collar, 16, on the shaft, 13, forms a stop for the wheel, 15, on the side opposite the ratchet disk, and also one member of a hall case for the ball bearing, 16, of a com-' binedgear-and-pinion, 174.8, having along hub by which it is mounted on the shaft, 13, one end of the huh cooperating with the collar, 16, to form the ball case for the hearing, 16"", and the other end of the hub similarly co-operating with the bearing plate, 19, mounted on he diaphragm, 2*, of the blower case. (in the inner reduced end of the spindle, 7, there is mounted loosely for rotation the pinion, 7 already mentioned, having the end toward the shoulder, caused by reducing the spindle, provided. with two ratchet teeth, 7; and in the shoulder of the spindlcdhcro is'lodgcd a spring-pressed pin, 7, which is thrust out by its spring, 7*, for engagementwith the shoulders, 7, to enable the pinion to; rotate the iindlc in one (.lirection while permitting said spindle and the siren wheel to run faster than the pin ion in the same direction. The hollow or tubular portion, 6*, of the post, 6, is apertured at one side in the zone of said pinion, 7", and through this aperture tho'gear, 18, protrudes for vngagemtnt with the pinion. (3o thorodurcd portion of tho'post, 6, there is mounlml a combined gear and pinion, 211-21, whose long huh is joul'naled on the redurod poriiorr of the post, one end of the huh r-o-opcrating with the sleeve, 6*, to form a ball case for the ball bearing, 12, at that end, the other end. being similarly adailrd to cooperate. with the shoulder inpost which is formed by reducing it, to Form the ease 'l lhc ball bearing, 22. 'lhr pinion, 21. oi this combined gear and pinion mosln s with and is driven by the 13. and the gear, 2 meshes with and 17-18. With this construction, it will. be understood that the operator by means of the pedal, 14, can give a very high rotary speed to the vaned wheel within the blower case.

The fixed parts,-namely, the case, 2, and the case, 11, or either of them, may be provided with any suitable flanges, 23 23 for mounting the devices fixedly in any convenient position in the vehicle with which 1t is to be used, so as to locate the foot piece, 14, of the pedal, 14, inconvenient osition for operation as described. With a evice of this character having the rotary wheel not more than six inches in diameter, a speed of rotationis easily obtained which will sound a musical note of roper pitch and loudness to be heard for a distance of several miles in an open country; and the gradual rise and fall of the speed causing a gradual rise and fall of the pitch makes the warning note which is sounded peculiarly recognizable. For modifying the loudness while permitting the full range of itch, a regulating shutter, 25, may

be provic ed encompassing the apertured periphery of the case, 2, having its end apertures corresponding to those of the case and adapted to be adjusted through a short angle about the ease to close more or less the apertures 2*, of the latter. A flange, 25, extending on to the diaphragm, 2 of the case, may be provided with two or more segmental slots, 25*, through which screws, 26, may extend into the diaphragm plate for-securing the shutter at any position to which it may be adjusted within the range of the slots.

1 claim 1. An alarm device comprising a siren wheel and a case; a-speed train mounted on the exterior of the siren-wheel case and a supplemental case also mounted on the sirenwheel case enclosing said speed train, the two cases together affording bearings for the train; a wheel of the train having a ratchet rim an operating lever mounted on the train case exteriorly thereof and a dog carried thereby engaging the ratchet rim, the case being apertured to admit the dog to the rim.

2. An alarm device comprising a fixed case and arotatable vaned wheel therein, the case having a multiplicity of apertures corre sponding to the chambers between the vanes and the case and wheel being adaptedto admit the air to said inter-vane chambers about the center; means for mountirfg and rotating the wheel comprising a post rigid with the case having a tubular hollow portion rotruding thereinto, the wheel having a ho ow hub which receives said protruding portion of the post, and a spindle located axially within said hollow hub which protrudes into the hollow portion of the post; a gear pinion rigid with said spindle, the hollow post bein apertured in the zone of said gear pinion, an

ms the pinion, 1'], ol the combined wheel, a speed-multiplying train of gears mounted on the case having a ear which protrudes through said a erture ar engagement with said pinion Wit in the hollow post.

3. An alarm device comprising a fixed case having a multiplicity of apertures and a siren wheel therein, the Wheel and easing being apertured at one side'about the center for air induction; a gear case mounted on the opposite side of the siren wheel case; a speedmultiplying gear train in said gear case for rotatmg the siren wheel; an operatinglever outside the gear case mounted for rocking about the axis of the first wheel of the train, the side of the gear case having a segmental slot, the first wheel of the train having ratchet flan e and the operatin lever having a pawl whic 1 protrudes from the slot for engagin the ratchet.

4. alarm device comprising a case having a multiplicity of peripheral apertures; a rotary vaned wheel within the case having corresponding apertures leadin from between its vanes, the case and wall being constructed to close such spaces between the vanes except at the center and at said apertures a speed gear train mounted on the case for rotating the wheel; a case inclosin the gear train and mounted rigidly on the a arm case; a shutter mounted loosely on the alarm case encompassing the latter, having apertures correspondmg with the peripheral apertures of the latter and rotatable thereabout at will to cover said apertures more or less.

5. An alarm device comprising a siren wheel and its case; a gear train mounted on the case for rotating the siren wheel, and a clutching device interposed in the train for communicating driving movement to the siren wheel in one direction only, adapted to ermit the wheel to run faster than the train 1n said direction.

6. An alarm device comprising a siren wheel and a case for the same; a speed-multiplying trainmounted on the case operatively connected with the siren wheel for rotating it an oscillating lever and a pawl-and-ratchet connection between the same, and a wheel on the train for driving the train in one direction, and a clutch device inter osed between the train and the siren wheel or driving the latter in one direction'and ermitting it to run faster than the train in t at direction.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set iny hand at Chicago, Illinois, this 26th day of March, A. 1)., 1906.

JOHN K. STEWART.

Witnesses:

Crms. S. BURTON, M. GERTRUDE ADY. 

